Convict Labor

An oíd Arm Arbor boy who went cast instead of west, as the fainous Ilorace Greeley advised, and is prospering by the change, takes exceptiou to the idea of convict labor. From a letter dated at Séneca Falls, N. Y., Oct. 10, we maketlie following extracte: "Findingyou on the riglit side in 999 times out of 1.000, I am surprised to see you favor convict labor. Your Ruggestions from time to time as to compeliing tramp to break stone for the improveraent of your roads is all right. And if our state prisons could procure some income from the loan of prisoners for some such " peculiar" work.woí apt to interfere with honeH labor, then, while the punishment would be lighter than idleuess, the state would save inoney, butas nowmanaged in the Northern States at least, a few corporations receive the benefit of labor at about one-half price, While the honest laborer (and his employees) suft'er tbrough couipetition. In Michigan so far as I remember, it affects the wagon trade. Now, but for convict labor, you inight have a large wagon manufacturing establishment in Ann Arbor, and you know tli tit nothing (except Universities) build up a town so well as faetones. You notice these things lees in your state because eompaiatively you are young in maiiufacturing, but here we are continually rigutiug convict labor, and it must go, sooner or later, or at least be greatly modified. This is the way it looks to me, and I am led to tliink you have not gone down to the bottom of'it yet. Yours hastily, Ed. C. Hoyt. agninst convict idleuess. Show us some other way to employ these priaoners and we wil] favor the metbod heartily if it is practical. But the idea of eupporting in ïaieness, giving tooa, sueuer una ruiment to the outlaws and convicta of a state and not requiring from them any return in labor, caiinot be done. Let the prlsoners in our state prison be kept in idleness and it would takt' all the military forceof the state to guard them. Besides it would add Immensely to the taxes of the people. The prisoners now pay their own way, and a little more sometimes. In idleness tht-y would eat large holes into the pockets of the people. It would require niuch moreof the people's hard cash to support them without labor than it robs them of by the system now in vogue. If Injustice must be done some one in this business, let it be done iu such a mannef as to do the most good and take from the people the least money.